


The Battles of Our Ancestors

by Destril



Series: Dragon's Heart [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: AU Draongs/Dragon Riders, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Bonded!Jango&Obi-wan, Canon-Typical Violence, Dragon!Anakin, Dragon!Obi-Wan, Gen, Gift Fic, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Monster Hunter!Jango, SW2020Exchange, Worldbuilding, fantasy elements and worldbuilding, gets a little dialogue heavy at times because lore, soulbonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:42:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25247827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Destril/pseuds/Destril
Summary: Jango Fett is a proud warrior of the Fett clan, one of the old families sworn to defend Mandalore and her people. When Jango is faced with a new threat while on a contract he finds that the dragons his ancestors once rode and fought alongside are not as dead as the world had thought and he begins to learn of what exactly happened to his family's ancient companions. Now an ancient threat has returned and Jango and Obi-wan must take up the fight their ancestors began to protect Mandalore and stop history from repeating itself.
Relationships: Jango Fett & Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jango Fett/Obi-Wan Kenobi
Series: Dragon's Heart [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1829152
Comments: 8
Kudos: 189
Collections: 2020 Star Wars Summer Fic Exchange





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TreeOfTime](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TreeOfTime/gifts).



> TreeOfTime,
> 
> You will never know how excited I was when I read over your interests at the beginning of this exchange! I was so excited to take a swing at your prompt idea and I really hope I did it justice! I wasn't super familiar with this pairing when I started this, but now I have devoured an unhealthy number of fics about these two lol. That being said I hope you like it!! -Des
> 
> **This was a gift Fic for a summer exchange in a fantastic Star Wars writing discord! That being said the ENTIRE work was posted in one day so the receiver could have a complete story! I only broke it into chapters to edit and for an easier read~ 
> 
> Future installments of this series will be on regular update schedules!

The weather was warm and relatively clear for the time of year, and Jango was taking advantage by riding helmetless as he journeyed through the less traversed paths. After living in the capital city for so long, rides like these had become almost a luxury for him. His orbak gave a low groan as he guided it through a shallow stream. He was traveling for a hunt, but that did nothing to dim his enjoyment of the peace of his surroundings. If anything, it merely increased his good mood. 

It had been some time since the people had called upon his family for such a task. Though there had been little information provided on just what sort of creature was plaguing the town, the idea of facing a monster after so long was invigorating. 

The Fett clan had long served as defenders of the realm, generations having dedicated their lives to protecting the people from all manner of threat, be it enemies from other nations, or the very creatures that inhabited their home. Trained from their youth to face such threats, their family had gained respect over their generations of service.

Jango remembered fondly the stories his father and grandfather had told him in his youth. Grandiose tales of hunting the mythical beasts of the land, fighting tooth and nail for their people sat upon the backs of the great dragons, the strongest warriors of their nation. But as Jango grew, he began to realize that those stories were long past. The dragons were gone, either dying out or hunted down, no one was sure, but there hadn't been one spotted in years. The Fett clan still served as protectors, but with every year, Mandalore's technology increased, making there less and less need for their intervention, and Jango had felt the loss keenly.

That was why he had jumped at the chance to go to the aid of this town. Jango was proud of his people and their growth, but he had trained so long and hard that getting the chance to prove himself as a warrior like this stirred something deep within him. Grinning slightly to himself in anticipation, he urged his orbak on.

#

The path was becoming more worn as he drew closer to the town, and he gently urged his mount to pick up the pace into a slow canter. Not long after he had noticed the changes in terrain, he saw the first glimpses of buildings. As he approached, he reached behind him to snag his helmet and secure it into place, squaring his shoulders. The town was one of the smaller ones, though still a hub of activity. Their distance from the cities had caused them to fall behind technologically, and as such, even from here, he could see that the buildings were small and still primarily basic stone and metalwork rather than the sleeker designs of the capital. It was charming in an almost rustic way, and Jango looked forward to the chance of spending a few days at a local inn and observing the town. 

The reports of the beast, Jango would need to gather more information on what exactly it was, reportedly seemed to strike with little pattern or intent. With mandalorians spreading out and claiming more of the land, it had been little surprise that towns like this were often the victims of raids and seasonal attacks from the local fauna, though most stuck to stealing from the farms. This beast, however, never took any of the animals it found. Instead, it seemed to rain terror and destruction on the town indiscriminately, almost as though it attacked merely to attack. This odd behavior was what had prompted the town to call on the capital to send aid.

From its sound, Jango figured it to be a territory struggle, some great beast defending what it still saw as it's land as it grew ready to mate or was being pushed by another stronger creature to expand or find new territory. It would explain the aggressive nature of the attacks, though Jango always felt a measure of guilt with such cases as this after all the poor creature didn't understand expansion or why there were suddenly invaders in its land. Jango had resolved to himself early on to try to drive the beast off rather than kill it if possible. It had worked before, after all. 

As he drew closer, Jango listened casually for the muted echoing sounds of the approaching town, always enjoying the hustle and bustle that felt so similar to his own home. He raised the gain on the audio processor components of his helmet ever so slightly to see if he could pick them out over the rustling of leaves but stiffened as he heard instead, something louder. 

Frowning, he raised the volume higher, listening as the sound came again, and that's when he recognized it for what it actually was, a roar. Snapping the reins of his mount, he urged the orbak into a strong run as he drew closer to the town, no longer even needing to use his helmet's receptors to hear the cries of the beast and the distress of the locals. 

He thundered past the outer gates and into chaos as people fled towards him from the town center. Quickly dismounting as to not accidentally trample any of the fleeing civilians, he tugged his mount to a nearby post and tied her, though loosely enough that should the creature attack this area she would be able to pull free to flee. Grabbing his pack, he quickly detached his dark saber and amban rifle slinging the later over his shoulder as he clipped the saber to his belt and sprinted towards the sounds of battle. 

As he crested the main street's hill, he caught his first glimpse of the creature and paused simply to observe for a brief moment, allowing himself time to form a plan of attack. 

It moved like nothing he had ever seen, at first seeming like nothing but a swirling twisting black mass. It was fast, its shifting form diving and darting between the buildings and striking at the few town guards still standing against its onslaught. As Jango watched the swirling stream sweep low to the ground, he saw something materialize in its mass for just a brief moment, shifting dark scales and a sharp reptilian snout snapping out as the cloud-like mass suddenly billowed into a sphere for a brief instance around the guard before shooting away faster then anyone could react leaving a torn and bloody pile of flesh and bone. 

Jango quickly unslung his rifle and loaded a shot even as his mind raced. This creature, he didn't recognize it! Years of training and countless hours learning everything he could about the many beasts that roamed this land, and yet this _thing_ matched none of those mentioned in the texts. 

_"Always know what you are fighting Jango, a warrior who enters a fight blindly is a fool and a dead man."_ His father's words echoed through his mind as he brought the rifle up to bare, tracking the creature through its sights. He had always heeded his father's wisdom, but at this moment, he could not afford to wait to determine the creature's weaknesses or even species. The guards would die long before. 

With this in mind he marked it carefully, he didn't know if the weapon would work, many beasts could only be slain by dark sabers or other specialized armaments, but Jango did know that if he were to stand a chance of hurting the thing he would need to strike the central mass just a the creature within became visible. 

He whispered a silent apology to the guard as he tracked the dark swarm diving at another guard, finger tightening on the trigger as he waited for even the slightest glimpse of the beast within the writhing shape. The guard screamed in terror, and Jango caught a glimpse of a snarling maw forming in the darkness. Taking a breath to steady his aim, he readied himself, but before he could shoot, there was a new sound. 

It sounded like rolling thunder but with a sharper screeching note underlaid, and in an instant, the roiling mass of darkness shot straight up into the air, just avoiding the frozen form of the guard. The creature spiraled and twisted as it continued its path straight up as the other sound came again. Jango cursed and dropped his rifle tip to the ground as he craned his neck to watch the creature's ascent. It had almost reached the low hanging clouds when the new sound, a hundred times louder than before, came one last time, and then there was a massive form bursting from the clouds and slamming into the dark mass. 

The creature screamed in pain and fury at its attacker, twisting and flinging itself into a death drop, its dark form curling around the newcomer almost completely obscuring it as Jango brought his rifle again to bare, trying to discern the new threat. 

As he tracked the pair's barely controlled plummet, he caught flashes of what could be coppery scales or flesh as the screeching mass grew ever closer to the ground. Just as Jango was sure they would hit the hard-packed dirt, they split apart with a shrieking cry, and Jango was finally able to see the new creature, and what he saw drove the breath from his lungs. 

The dragon was massive, its coppery scales glimmered in the sunlight as it swooped low and hit the ground before launching back into the air, great leathery wings snapping down to propel its lithe reptilian form skyward once more. Its rumbling challenge meeting the shriek of the dark creature as the two clashed once more. It was beautiful in its fury, snapping and raking at the other creature with deadly claws and glistening teeth.

Jango felt as though the ground beneath his feet was shifting, his knees weakened by the sight of the magnificent creature he had thought he would never see. The dragons were dead. The days of dragons and bonded pairs were nothing but a distant memory, scorched away by Death Watch and time itself. It couldn't be. But there was no denying the reality of what he was seeing. 

That was a dragon. 

A living breathing fully matured greater dragon. 

And it was losing.

The truth in that last thought wrenched him from his awe-struck state as he realized that where before the two appeared to have been evenly matched, the battle was quickly turning one-sided as the great coppery beast was forced to defend itself from the quick and deadly barrage of attacks it now faced. 

Jango didn't know when he had lowered his rifle a second time, but now his training kicked in, allowing him the focus he needed despite the lingering shock. He jerked the barrel up yet again and tracked the pair, assessing the fight through his scope. Before his vision had been tinted by the awe of discovering the continued existence of the dragons of old, but he now saw the more sobering details. 

The dragon was thin, powerful muscles on sharp display as it lacked the proper body mass for a creature of its size. Scales he thought to glimmer before instead merely reflected the sun's own light and visible scarring scattered its flanks. As he watched, he saw the silvery rivulets of blood pouring from new wounds inflicted in the fight and old ones seemingly opened. This dragon had seen battle before and frequently but was no match for the monster's fury before it. 

Even as he watched deadly fangs emerged from the dark mass, snapping and tearing at the dragon's softer underbelly and thin wing membranes, finally catching that of the left-wing and tearing at it in a savage display. The dragon bellowed its anger and pain, and Jango could only watch in horror as the tattered wing gave out under the combined weight of the pair, sending them once more towards the trees below, only this time, neither pulled up. The resounding boom of the pair striking the trees and ground echoes and without even stopping to think Jango takes off running in that direction, slinging his rifle over his shoulder. 

It's not a far distance, and Jango is fit enough to make good time, but the tide of the fight has shifted drastically. The ground is splattered with silver blood, and the dark creature has managed to pin the dragon on its back. The coppery form writhing and snapping at the smaller monster, but ultimately pinned and at a severe disadvantage. 

Jango barely pauses to catch his breath before he is unclipping a small explosive from his belt. They were more meant as a last resort to allow Jango to gain some distance in a retreat, but against something of this size, he could only hope that the little device was new and startling enough to give the dragon a chance to recover itself. 

With that in mind, the warrior armed the small sphere and threw it as hard as he could, aiming for the center mass of the creature pinning the dragon. Just as it disappeared into the dark cloud, he heard the telltale bang of detonation, and the creature screamed.

Jango stumbled back in shock as instead of merely being startled, the creature shrieked and began to writhe as the darkness around it became alight with flames, the apparently flammable gases which wreathed its form catching with terrifying speed. Beneath the now burning monster, the dragon had come alive, heaving upwards it threw the burning mass from it and snarled, snapping at the more visible parts of the creature as it tried to drop to the ground and roll in an attempt to smother the engulfing blaze. 

The sick smell of burning flesh and the sizzling pops filled the space as the dark creature continued to try to douse the flames on its body with increased desperation while still backing away from the heckling bites and swipes of the dragon.

Finally, the creature seemed to realize the direness of its situation and lifted off the ground in a streak of roiling darkness and flames, shooting skyward and into the clouds above with a piercing cry. Jango watched in fascinated horror as the dark mass surrounding it dripped off like viscous sludge as it tore through the sky, jerking as one such globule smacked wetly to the ground nearby and began to sizzle as the grass around it turned black. 

In little time at all, the thing was utterly stolen from view as it entered the heavy clouds, and its cries faded into nothing. Jango continued to stare at where it had disappeared for a long few moments longer, before a deep rumbling drew his attention back to the still very present dragon in the clearing, causing him to jump slightly. 

What was he, some freshly armored rookie getting distracted and jumpy on their first hunt? In a practiced motion, his dark saber was in his hand in a readied block as his body fell into a solid stance. He'd heard many stories of the dragons as a child, and all those stories lurched to the front of his mind now as he stared at the beast before him. Yes, his family had a long and mutual relationship with the dragons in the days of old, but the dragons had been missing for years and who knows how the creature would react to him now, especially while injured. Best to treat it like any other wild beast until he was able to better assess the situation. 

The dragon watched him too, its eyes a sharp blue as its slit pupils remained small and weary, the low rumble in its chest dying down as Jango showed no signs of attacking. Even now, the mandalorian could see the intelligence in those eyes and knew that the dragon was observing him just as carefully as Jango was him. 

This close Jango could fully grasp just how big the dragon was, definitely a fully mature male. Jango figured it would be close to twenty feet tall if it stood fully, and its wingspan easily doubled that, though as it was, the one was hanging low and dragging slightly. And it wasn't fully copper as he had first thought, instead streaks of white, black and blue rippled in small patches near its horns and face as well as along its back and tail. The silver of its blood reflected sharply in contrast with the dull luster of its scales in the forest's scattered light. It was both terrifying and beautiful in a deadly way.

So tensed and focused on observing the creature, Jango was not prepared to feel something twinge behind his eyes, and an odd mix of emotions nudged him.

_Wary/gratitude/question?_

Jango staggered slightly at the overwhelming pressure that accompanied the words? Intentions? That flooded his mind and barely stopped himself from dropping his saber in favor of clutching his helmeted head. As it was, he couldn't help but sway harshly and bow his head a little in an attempt to stay on his feet. The dragon's pupils slit even further as it observed the effect of its communication with the human before it. Jango growled lowly in his throat and raised his saber higher in defiance. 

The dragon's long sleek neck dipped slightly as it flared his good wing as it snaked its massive maw closer to Jango, its crested spines rising in an easily discernible threat display while emitting a low hissing noise. Jango hissed back lowly both in pain and to try to hide any weakness from the beast. 

Again the pressure built behind his eyes. 

_Wary/threat/question?_

"Stop it!" Jango barked at the creature as this time, the pressure didn't fade, and the intentions were pressed relentlessly into his mind, his vision nearly going white at the pain. Surprisingly the dragon did, the pressure vanishing with a pop, and this time Jango couldn't even try to keep his feet as he was forced to sink to one knee, even as he locked his elbow to keep his saber at the ready in front of him. 

_Never show weakness to your enemy. If they see you as weak, you've already lost when facing a beast. A man can be tricked, a beast cannot._

His father's words whispered through the pain in his mind as Jango fought to regain his control. He'd heard of the Dragon Voice and even heard of the initial pain it could cause, but this was extreme and wrong. Young hunters in the family once grew up surrounded by the dragons bonded to their kin, learning to adapt their minds to the Voices, even if they could not perform the more nuanced bond speak which was shared between bonded hunters and dragons. Since the dragons had vanished, however, Jango had never had the chance to train his mind to accept the ancient language. 

Taking a few steadying breaths, he carefully raised his head. The dragon had relaxed its defensive posture and now seemed to be observing Jango curiously, those sharp, intelligent eyes tracking his every move as Jango staggered to his feet. 

"I can't speak to you, I'm not trained in the Dragon Voice." Jango explained lowly as he cautiously lowered his saber. If the dragon had wished to hurt him, it was unlikely that it would have listened to his command earlier. As it was, Jango was reluctant to raise a blade to what may be the last remaining dragon, knowing their connection to his clan. 

The dragon had snorted at his words, but now it slowly dropped his head to sit more level with Jango, and he couldn't help but tense as he felt the nudge of pressure in his head that signified the other was going to Speak to him again. He jolts and opened his mouth to bark out a denial, he thought the other understood, but his voice died in his throat as instead of the overwhelming pressure there was a gentle nudge. 

_Curious/Help/Question?_

Jango blinked in shock at the lack of pain. 

"How?"

_Amusement/Help/Question_

This time there was an underlying current of something. There was no way to put it into words, but it felt old, and Jango found himself stepping closer without meaning too, deactivating his saber and clipping it back to his belt. 

"Why did you attack that creature, and where did you come from? The dragons have been gone for generations, how are you here? Jango implored, his voice carefully neutral. 

There was an undercurrent of sadness as the same string of intentions washed over him. Jango frowned. The dragon was clearly not aggressive and had fought that creature viciously, though it was unknown whether it was to protect the town or its own territory. 

Now that the fear and awe had faded, Jango allowed his gaze to sweep the dragon critically. The enormous creature had taken a beating, the damage to its wing alone ensuring that it wouldn't be flying anytime soon, and the other wounds would hinder it certainly, yet it hadn't fled or attacked him. 

"What do you want?"

The blue eyes flashed, and the dragon rumbled a low sound that Jango felt in his very bones. He felt beginning pressure in his mind once more, but it was cut off sharply as the sound of shouting and rustling in the brush behind the hunter reached the pair. The dragon's massive head swung sharply to face the noise, a low hiss replacing the rumbling as it once again flared its good wing before seemingly coming back to itself and turning its head around to stare down at Jango, who startled back a step at the sharp movement.

_Danger/Move/Safe/Question_

Jango, whose hand had fallen to the hilt of his saber, quirked a look over his shoulder before entirely focusing on the dragon.

"You need to leave. My clan had a long history with the dragons, but these people will fear you."

The great coppery head remained facing the noise, but its eyes glanced down to where Jango stood. 

_Danger/Move/Safe/Follow_

Jango whipped his head around to stare up at the dragon as the last part registered, and the dragon gave a soft grumbling sound before dipping its head and blowing a strong burst of air over Jango, causing him to stagger. Then to his surprise, the dragon turned and lumbered into the trees as it repeated its earlier intentions more forcefully. 

_Danger/Move/Safe/Follow_

Before he had even fully registered the intentions, he had taken a step forward, but he firmly stopped himself. What was he doing? This was an unknown dragon. Shared history or not, it was a wild beast, and it had been decades since his clan had seen or bonded with one. How could he know that this dragon would honor the old ways or that it had no ill will harbored after Death Watch had hunted its kind? 

The sounds of the town guards were growing closer, and Jango tensed. If he allowed the creature to leave, the chances of him ever finding it again were slim to none. Whatever had happened to the Great Dragons, this one had somehow survived and remained hidden all these years. If Jango let it leave, he was also losing his chance at answers. 

With a short curse and one last glance back towards the town, Jango set off at an easy jog after the fading copper scaled form.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jango follows the dragon and makes some startling discoveries.

They walked in silence.

The great beast lumbered along at a slow but steady pace, seemingly unbothered by the various wounds still oozing silvery rivulets. 

Jango had tried to question the dragon, asking question after question, but the big coppery lizard seemed to be ignoring him, tramping along just fast enough for Jango to constantly need to jog for short bursts to keep up. The earlier awe he had felt at the sight of the magnificent creature had quickly faded as sweat pooled beneath the heavy leathers and metal of his armor, and his stamina and patience were pushed to its limits. Now all he felt was a simmering irritation as he used his feet and a sizeable frond-like branch to sweep dust and dead leaves over the great droplets of blood that the stupid beast was trailing.

Of course, the damn thing seemed to give little care or notice to Jango's efforts to keep them from being tracked by its wonderfully obvious silver-blooded trail. It didn't even have the grace to thank the mandalorian for his efforts to stop them from being hunted down. How it had remained hidden all this time was indeed a mystery when it seemed so unconcerned by the idea of being followed or discovered. 

Jango had become just about wholly fed up with his scaly companion when they finally broke the treeline nearly two hours later. He was muttering curses as he furiously swiped at a particularly large blood drop when the pressure returned. 

_Amusement/Follow/Home_

The mandalorian almost snapped at the dragon before that last part caught up with him. Home? The dragon had brought him to its nest? Curious, Jango jogged up the short distance to stand alongside the giant serpent and was shocked by the sight that met him. 

Below the ridge on which they stood sat a small valley, lush and overgrown it was rather beautiful in the low afternoon light, but what drew his attention was the clearly visible stone structures amidst the thick flora. Sweeping a critical gaze over the structures and using his visor to pinpoint specific pieces, it wasn't hard to guess that this had once been a city. Jango frowned as he tried to judge the age of the buildings he could make out, but the more he thought about it, the more he was confident there had never been a city here. 

His clan spanned many decades, and as such, the preservation of history had become intertwined with their role as protectors of their people. Jango had sat through countless lessons over the years, teaching him the history of not only his clan and their culture but of the people of Mandalore. Geography, literature, military, culture, he had been taught the importance of all. This is why he knew for certain that there was no city beyond the town they had left. Other towns and smaller villages, but nothing of this size. 

"Where are we, there should be no city here." Jango asked, tilting his visored gaze up to look at the dragon.

_Home/Regret/Protect_

Jango frowned. That didn't answer much if he was, to be honest. Obviously, there had been an established city here at some point, but with their limited communication, he would be hard-pressed to learn any more about this place. So instead of answering, he just hummed a low agreement and turned his gaze back. 

A moment or so later, there was movement to his left, and he glanced back to see the dragon begin the descent into the valley. Casting one last sweeping glance over the view, Jango hefted his rifle higher on his shoulder and followed. 

The dragon seemed to know where he was going, moving easily down the incline and through a well worn hole in what appeared to be a large stone wall surrounding the city. Jango followed cautiously, though he continued to observe his surroundings with a reserved curiousness. On the ground, he realized that the buildings, those still held up by vines and trees, were far older then he had first thought and taller as well.

The architecture was not a style he recognized as even in their disrepair, he could make out elegant curves and spirals, with an almost sweeping style to their forms. The buildings were obviously built to prioritize height over width, with many of them sporting extensive balconies and what Jango believed to be a rather intricate series of turbines sat upon most of them.

The dragon huffed at him, and he was embarrassed to find that the creature was now quite a bit further ahead of him and he grumbled as he stalked forward to follow him once more, though Jango chose to ignore the smugness radiating from the beast, for now, to further inspect what he could from here.

Not far from the wall, the pair came across the largest building they had encountered yet. Several spires pierced the canopy, though one had crumbled with time, and its massive structure reminded Jango of one of the old religious houses that once stood in the center of the capital, now replaced with more modern designs. Jango figured it must have been beautiful in its day as its massive form sat adorned with columns and carvings, large shattered windows showing the remains of stained glass and a sweeping, crumbling staircase leading up to it.

Even overgrown and degraded, Jango could appreciate the sheer craftsmanship that had gone into its construction, but he didn't dwell on it long as his eyes raked over the statues and carvings. 

"Those statues, the carvings, they're dragons!"

His voice sounded accusatory as it sunk in what he was looking at, but he couldn't be bothered to correct his tone. He strode forward towards one of the large statutes which had tumbled from its perch decades ago, his gloved hand running along the curve of a stone wing. He took a moment to stare at it before whipping back to look at the coppery dragon still standing a few dozen meters away.

"Where are we?" Jango demanded, inexplicably angry for reasons he couldn't determine right now as he stared at the massive beast, the last of a species he had long since thought dead.

The dragon lowered its head slightly, and the harsh edge to Jango's anger simmered down in the face of the pure sorrow that lit those deep eyes now. An oddly breathy whine came from the dragon as it nudged carefully at another larger statue nearby before straightening and making its way forward again.

As Jango watched it hunkered its hulking form close to the ground and pulled its wings in as tight as it could with one still dragging, before crawling forward and squeezing through the gaping hole where Jango figure two large doors had once stood and into the large building. 

As the coppery form disappeared into the old building, Jango had no choice but to follow once more, he would get his answers! He'd give the beast a pass for now, but language barriers or not there was something else going on here, and the warrior in Jango grew nervous at the lack of intel he had and how little he knew of his current situation. 

Stepping out of the sun, he felt his shoulders drop as the temperature cooled ever so slightly, granting him some relief from the heated press of his armor. His visor had quickly adjusted to the lower light, though crumbling sections of the high vaulted ceiling spared enough sunlight that he hardly needed the extra help. 

Ahead the dragon was still moving, making its way towards the dark mouth of yet another staircase leading down further into the building. Beginning to follow Jango took in the high ceilings and columns, reminiscent to the palace's entrance hall. He wondered what this place had been before?

Upon reaching the stairs, he found himself activating the night vision on his visor as the light faded away as he descends deeper into the building following the faint shine of a scaled tail. 

Down and down he walked until ahead he finally saw the ground level out ahead and slowed his pace slightly. Upon reaching the last step, he paused with his hand on his saber as training kicked in, and he gave the room a clearing sweep. At first glance, all he really noticed was the giant dragon still moving away from him and what appeared to be old shelving taking up every open space, but on the second, he took the time to take in more detail.

The room was big, though far smaller than the entrance hall above them. As he had already noted, the room was filled with shelves, the few that still remained fully intact, nearly brushing the ceiling. Statues and pedestals were scattered around the room, and the floor was covered in what appeared to be a mix of paper and dead leaves. 

Walking into the room, Jango veered off to the side and approached one of the nearby shelves. To his surprise, the entire worn thing was filled with books and sealed scroll tubes. Carefully he reached out and grabbed one, brushing some of the dust from its leather binding and squinting to read the words embossed on the cover. He couldn't read it, and it took him a moment to realize it wasn't from wear and age, but rather because though the characters were extremely close to Mando' a, there was a noticeable difference in a few. Some older dialect? It made about as much sense as the existence of this place, but it seemed Jango was in for a lot of surprises today. 

He was just starting to reach for another book when there was a low huffing noise behind him, and without warning, his visor whited out, and he found himself blinded. 

Jerking back with a curse, Jango tore the helmet from his head and staggered a moment as he blinked furiously to clear his vision. As soon as his eyes had adjusted, he turned to face the only other occupant in the room and realized that the room was now illuminated by what seemed to be a series of interconnected braziers all over the place. 

The dragon turned to regard him for a long moment before padding further back to a noticeably clearer portion of the floor and with a heaving sigh, sinking to the ground. Jango watched as the dragon eased his head around and nosed at the damaged wing, carefully stretching it out before gently beginning to lap at it with his tongue in short but smooth strokes. 

"What is this place?" Jango questioned yet again, allowing his eyes to wander around the now lit room, taking in the rows of shelves still filled with scrolls and tomes like those he had been looking at before. The dragon didn't stop in assessing its injuries as it gave its reply.

_Home/Safe/Protect_

Jango huffed a noise of frustration at the vagueness of the reply. This communication they had wasn't working. They needed something better.

"So this is what, your den? I figured that much, but what is this city, this building? I studied the old maps. There was no city here, and yet this place exists."

The dragon gave a long sigh and swung its head around to glare at the mandalorian shoving annoyance at Jango, who glared right back.

"Listen, I'm as frustrated as you, you great lizard, but this is the best communication we've got, so we will have to make it work. And before we do anything else, what in the name of the old gods are you doing?"

Another stronger wave of annoyance washed over Jango, bringing with it a sharp jab of pain, but he locked his knees and forced himself not to react. Across the room, the dragon blew a short heated snort and went back to using its mouth to tug and scrape at a wound near the base of its wing, ignoring Jango completely.

The man lasted another few minutes before growling a short curse and stomping over towards the other. He got a brief glare in his direction, but otherwise, the dragon allowed him to approach with little complaint. 

As he drew alongside the coppery flank, he finally had a better view of the various wounds that littered the scales and realized what the other was doing. Almost completely hidden by the torn wing's main bulk was a large piece of what appeared to be wood protruding from an oozing gash, a gruesome parody of a splinter.

Scales around the area had been torn away, both by the initial wound, but also from the dragon's teeth as it tried desperately to find enough purchase on the offending object to pull it out, and it left large patches of pink, bloody skin visible. It had probably happened when the pair had crashed down into the forest Jango mused as the dragon bit at it again, but only succeeded in pushing the thing deeper, leaving the dragon snarling in frustration and pain. 

Before he had even really realized what he was doing, Jango has stepped closer and called out. 

"Stop, you're only making it worse."

Jango was immediately halted as his mind was bombarded with a fast flash of _Anger/Pain/Frustration_ , causing him to stagger and glare up at the other.

"I'm right! Just let me help you already, and then you can get to answering all those questions you keep ignoring!" 

Jango regretted the words immediately, tensing in anticipation for the anger that was sure to follow, given the dragon's attitude so far. It seemed his odd companion was set on surprising him yet again, however, as instead of snapping and snarling, he stopped tearing at the wound and swung his head around to regard the human, almost as though contemplating Jango's words. With nothing else to do, the mandalorian waited as the beast watched him before finally seeming to reach a decision. With slow movements, the dragon shifted itself so that the wound was fully visible and then, while maintaining eye contact, slowly relaxed its neck and laid its head on the floor with a low rumbling. 

_Resignation/Warning_

Jango barely even registered the warning, still too caught on the fact that this ancient creature who had no reason to trust him was willing to allow him to approach while the other was in such a vulnerable state. As if sensing his thoughts, the dragon slowly pulled its lips back to reveal sharp fangs the length of Jango's arm.

"Stop your posturing and hold still you kriffin lizard." He called with fake bravado even as he began inching his way closer, entire body tensed in anticipation of this being a trap. Sure the thing hadn't hurt him yet, but Jango wasn't shiny enough to trust that in the slightest. 

He'd just gotten within touching distance of the powerful tail when a loud noise caused him to startle back, his hand grabbing the hilt of his saber before he even registered that the creature had simply sighed and was now watching him with a smug look, amusement oozing into his mind. He almost snapped at the other, but instead just snarled some curses before forcing himself to move closer with a faster stride, refusing to give the insufferable creature the satisfaction of thinking he was afraid. Finally, he was level with the wound, though due to the dragon's size, he was still a good few feet below the lower edge of the injury. 

"I'm gonna have to climb up there, so don't get all pissy at me, or I won't help." 

The dragon didn't bother to reply, instead just continuing to watch him with a sharp gaze. Taking that as permission, Jango cast a critical eye over the small wall of breathing coppery scales he would need to scale to get at the problem searching for anything he could use as footholds and handholds to hoist himself up. Before he could decide on his approach, however, there as another gusting sigh of hot air and suddenly something had grabbed at the armor and straps on his back, and he was dangling in the air.

"Little Gods!" He yelled as he swung from the carefully grasping mouth of the massive beast, his feet kicking instinctively for a short moment until his brain caught up and he froze stiff. Luckily he wasn't left dangling for long as the dragon grumbled softly and swung around to carefully deposit Jango just above where the wound was, close enough to the spinal ridge that he could grab onto the spines to steady himself. 

As soon as he was released, he spun around to face the impassive looking dragon, his face twisted into a snarl of rage. 

"Never! Do that again, you hear?"

The dragon simply donned a look of boredom and even had the audacity to yawn, showing off its two rows of massive teeth. Once it had finished what Jango was sure was a fake yawn, it turned its eyes pointedly to the wound before looking back at Jango with a huff. He maintained his glare for a few moments longer, just to be contrary before cursing again and turning away to look at the wound. From here, he could get a much better look at the damage and quickly realized that this was not going to be an easy task. 

The dragon's earlier attempts to remove the splintering wood had driven it in deeper, so now only a short tip remained visible like a giant splinter. Humming to himself, he carefully shuffled closer, taking care not to step on any now irritated skin around it. Once he stood next to it, he was able to crouch down and grasp at it.

"Don't kriffin eat me." He muttered as his gloved hands carefully came to rest on the blood slicked wood, hyper-aware of the dragon's attention on his back.

Taking a deep breath, Jango moved his hands around and found a decent hold. Rising out of his crouch, he took one last chance to brace his feet before pulling his entire weight behind it. It was in deep, however, and he had barely budged the thing when he felt his gloves lose their traction, and with a yelp, he lost his grip stumbling back a step. Above him, the dragon made a sharp mix between a screech and a low groaning noise as the movement jostled the shard, causing more blood to well up around it. 

Jango apologized absently as he regained his feet and eyed the offending object. It was obviously deep, and as it was, it was going to be too slick to pull out with his hands alone. Maybe? Jango reached into his boots and pulled out twin daggers, twirling them into a more comfortable grip he knelt back down under the dragon's watchful gaze and stabbed them into either side of the protruding end effectively creating handholds for himself. 

"Alright, let's try this again."

Once more, he took up his earlier position, and after a second to get a firm grip began to pull again. Jango could immediately feel the difference as the daggers held firm, and with agonizing slowness, the wood shard began to slip from the wound, causing a wet suctioning sound. He could hear the dragon's low keening but didn't dare let up until finally with a last jerk, the wretched thing came free. Not expecting the sudden loss of resistance, Jango fell and lost his grip on the daggers. The heavy, blood slick object slammed down into his breastplate, knocking the wind out of his lungs even as the dragon lurched beneath him, sending him sliding down the blood slicked flank. He hit the ground with a clatter of armor and a shout of pain even as the dragon pushed a short wave of _Regret/Gratefulness/Amusement_ at him. Jango ignored the other as he just lay there trying to catch his breath. 

Once it no longer felt like his lungs were collapsing, he levered himself upright again, grimacing at his now bloodsoaked armor. Above him, the dragon cast him a quick glance as if checking he was alright before going back to cleaning the weeping wound. 

"You're welcome." Jango grouched as he climbed back to his feet, his now blood-soaked breastplate squelching uncomfortably. With a drawn-out growl of frustration, he tore his bloody gloves off and began to unclasp the many buckles holding the heavy metal pieces. If the dragon had meant him any harm, he surely would have acted by now, so he would take his chances and remove the soiled outer layers of armor. The dragon had been focused on cleaning the wound but perked up to look at him as his armor clattered to the floor. 

"There's got to be a stream around here, I could use it to wash this off-"

A hot burst of air washed over him, and he jerked around to find the massive snout mere inches from him. Jango had to stop himself from flinching away instinctively instead raising his gaze to meet the deep blue orbs. The dragon emitted a low sound, almost like a purring feline, and moved his snout even closer. Without even thinking about it, Jango raised his hand between them to- to what? Push it away? Pet it? He didn't have a chance to figure out what he had meant to do though, as the coppery scales were suddenly pushed against his bare hand, and he only had a moment to feel how warm they were against his skin before his vision whited out.

Images flashed through his head faster than he could comprehend, his chest felt as though it was going to explode from the sheer pressure he felt there. It was agony. Jango might have been screaming, but he couldn't hear. He couldn't see! There was nothing and everything at once, and as though by some distant connection, he felt his knees give out and slam into the rough stone as he heard a voice, clipped and rolling bouncing through his mind like a thousand echos. Calling out. To him? He couldn't- he couldn't!

Then, just as he thought he would be undone completely, it stopped. 

The last thing he heard before slipping away was a soft, accented voice say.

"It's you."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jango and Obi-wan discuss their new situation.

His entire being ached. That was the first thing that Jango's foggy mind registered. It felt as though he had been training with the Weapon's Master for hours without a break. His sore muscles tensed even as his mind throbbed tenderly at the noise. 

Noise?

Forcing himself to gather his scattered thoughts, Jango fell back onto his training. Make no movement, no sound. Assess your surroundings. What did he remember? What was the current threat?

Sluggishly his mind brought up images of the dragon, the wound, tugging the shard from it and removing his armor. A massive nose, pressing to his hand. 

Something had happened to after that, he wasn't sure what, but he remembered the pain now. That feeling of being torn apart. Why wasn't he dead? No, focus. Where was he?

Cold stone, the smell of mildew and rot, still under the weird cathedral then. The voices nearby were close-. Jango had to stop himself from reacting as he registered that there was, in fact, a voice coming from somewhere nearby. They had been alone, he was sure of it.

Were there still people living here? It seemed impossible given the state of it, but maybe one of the nomadic groups had set up near here and was using the ruins as a shelter for the season, but what about the dragon? Maybe it left-

"No, I'm afraid the situation has become far more complicated than that."

This time Jango can't stop himself from startling as the voice seems to come from within his mind. He immediately opens his eyes and forces himself up into a sitting position, his eyes already scanning around him. His dark saber is ignited in his hand a moment later when he registers not only the large coppery dragon from before, but a smaller rusty red drake crouched nearby, golden gold-flecked eyes peering at him curiously. 

The newcomer is smaller than the copper dragon, though what it lacked in bulk, it made up in length and wingspan. The dark wine-red of its scales are broken up by browns and blacks of its wings and spines. Its face is narrower, sweeping back in a pair of double horns, and one of its glinting eyes is intersected by a large scar. 

"Now, there is no need for any weapons. Can we not talk this out like civilized beings?"

The same clipped tone echoes through his mind again, and Jango finds himself hesitating as the coppery dragon's eyes bore into his own. 

"That-is that you? Speaking to me?" Jango barks, refusing to lower his weapon, not with the new dragon still so close.

"It is, it seems we have much to discuss. Truly I'm surprised you can already understand me so easily. Qui-Gon always spoke of such connections taking more time to form. This really is rather unorthodox."

"Come on, Obi-wan, when has anything ever gone according to how it should be around us?"

The second voice is softer than the first, harder to understand, almost as though being spoken from another room, and Jango shakes his head slightly at the odd sensation it leaves in his mind. The dragons seem to notice his reaction for the bigger copper flashes a glare at the smaller drake causing the other to huff. The larger dragon, Obi-wan, watches his companion for a moment longer before turning to stare down at Jango. 

"I'm sorry, it seems I've gotten you wrapped up in affairs you have no part of, it was not my intentions, and for that, I am truly sorry."

Jango bristles at that, still confused as to what the hell is going on.

"What the kriff are you talking about, what is happening? Why can I suddenly hear you."

Before the dragon can answer, the smaller drake moves again as if settling on its haunches more, but Jango immediately turns the saber towards it with a low snarl. The drake looks completely nonplussed if not outright amused, but like a more refined version of the intentions from earlier, Jango can suddenly feel a wash of irritation from Obi-wan. Something about the way it feels in his mind is different this time, however. Jango begins frantically trying to find the difference even as the two dragons stare at each other for a long moment. Finally, the smaller breaks eye contact with a puff of smoke and rises, wrenching Jango back to attention. 

"It seems Obi-wan doesn't want me around you."

The voice is oddly faint again, so it takes a second for the mandalorian to realize that the drake is addressing him, but even once he does, Jango doesn't offer any answer. After all, what would he say? That he doesn't want to be around _either_ of them? Something told Jango that wasn't going to help.

The drake seems to realize that no answer will be coming from the human and huffs again before turning to regard Obi-wan. 

"You really couldn't have found him at a worse time, but do know, I _am_ happy for you, Master." The dark dragon says even as he rises and slinks towards the stairway leading up into the main hall, likely to leave.

"I'll check out that lead on Maul. Hopefully, this time it will really be him."

And with that, the drake bound up the staircase. Next to him, the dragon visibly relaxed, allowing his tensed form to sink back to the hard stone even as Jango spotted a visible trembling in the muscles around his injuries.

"That hatchling will be the death of me one day." The voice, Obi-wan's voice, hums in his mind, though Jango can feel the threading of affection and exasperation that accompany the complaint. For just a moment, Jango feels himself sink into the warmth and light of the voice in his mind, feeling himself relax as well, his saber beginning to lower. Then he realizes what is happening and snaps out of it, wrenching his mind back into control and bringing the saber to bare once more.

"Alright, enough of this bantha shit! You will explain what is happening now, or I will gut you where you lie!"

They both knew the dragon could still easily kill the small human before he ever even got close to the great beast, but Jango was tired of being distracted and talked in circles. Something was clearly wrong and different, and Jango had never felt more helplessly disadvantaged before in his life. It made him sick.

Obi-wan flinched slightly, and Jango felt a strong remorse bloom in his mind before fading back.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you."

"I'm not-"

"This was not how I pictured one-day meeting you, but I supposed Anakin was correct with his earlier statement. I truly wish we could have undertaken a formal meeting and formed a link over time like the old ways demand, but we are nothing if not victims of circumstance. I will do what I can to answer your questions, and in turn, I hope you grant me your attention and an open mind."

Jango didn't trust this, not one single bit of this entire situation, but he was out of his element and as infuriating as it was, this Obi-wan had the answers he needed.

"Fine, but I reserve the right to leave at any time, and you will not stop me."

"Your terms are fair. Now, I realize I don't even know your name."

"Jango." He bit out and felt another gentle warmth in his mind causing him to bite his tongue to not say more.

"If I remember, humans hold family names as well?"

"Just Jango."

"Very well. I am Obi-Wan-Kenobi, at least in the common tongue. I'm afraid we must know each other more before I am able to share my true name with you."

Jango gave a curt nod. He's heard of dragon's true names and the power they held over the dragons of old. Only their kin could know such names and their bonded riders once a full bond was formed between them. It had been one of the final stages of the ceremonies linking a bonded pair, the sharing of names and souls. 

"You do not seem surprised by me or my kind. Many would fear a dragon after not having seen one of my people for so long. Yet you have not reacted like the humans of the town, so I can only assume you have knowledge of me?"

"Children's tales growing up, nothing more. I'm a hunter, you learn to recognize a threat."

Obi-Wan hummed a low noise in his throat and observed Jango.

"I am far older than you think Jango, and it is only because of that fact that I recognize your armor. Anakin was too young to know the markings on your pauldrons and the dark saber you wield. You don't fear me, because to you I am not a mindless beast to be hunted, nor am I some great creature of myth. No, you do not fear me because to you and your family, I am an ally long gone, but not so easily forgotten. Am I correct?"

Jango eyed the dragon with a calculating look. Just his luck, he would get one of the old dragons who would recognize his clan's armor style, he was hoping to keep his connection to the clans quiet until he had a better idea of the situation. This new development could put him at a severe disadvantage. He was still deciding how to proceed when Obi-Wan let out a gusting sigh and spoke in his mind again.

"I'm not giving my knowledge of this information as a threat or to gain the upper hand, I merely wished to make sure you had been taught of my kind before explaining. Finding a starting place if you would. As you are from one of the old clans that will make this easier as you likely will already know what is happening, even if you don't want to admit it."

"What are you-"

"Jango of the old families of Mandalore, you underwent the training to become a warrior for your family, you know what your newfound ability to hear our tongue means. To have the Dragon's Speech."

Jango took a step away, his saber down as he shook his head, unable to look away from those blue eyes.

"No! The riders died out with the dragons. There hasn't been one in generations!"

"And yet, there are still dragons, and you can understand me."

Jango snarled at the stupid beast and turned away, beginning to pace the dim space. Behind him, he heard the scrape of scales on the stone as Obi-wan shifted.

"Jango, you can feel it too. I have never heard of it happening this fast, normally there would be steps and trials to build the connection, but we cannot deny what has happened!"

"Shut up! I'm trying to think!"

"Jango, we are linked. Like your ancestors and mine, we have been linked. Dragon and rider, bound body and mind. We are bonded."

The dragon's words echoed in Jango's head as he struggled to process them or disprove them. There was no way, the dragons were dead, the tales of riders and dragons, bonded pairs, a thing of history! There were no dragon riders in the clans, not now, not for generations!

And yet, here stood living proof that the dragons were not as extinct as the families had thought. Not just Obi-wan, but the drake from earlier, Anakin, still too young to have lived during the times of the riders. Then there was the way Obi-wan's words were heard so crisply, so clearly in his mind, and the gentle, soothing warmth that accompanied them. The feeling of rightness in hearing the clipped accented words and the ease he found around the giant beast. Obi-wan was right, he should have feared something so unknown, so big and wild, but without even realizing it, Jango had instinctively responded to the other, his very soul recognizing its match and guiding him. 

It was impossible, but it was true. 

After generations, Jango had not only discovered the dragons once more. He had found his bonded.

"This, it isn't right. This isn't how this is supposed to happen." Jango hated how hesitant he sounded as he said those words, but this was not something he'd ever thought he would experience or need to prepare for, and he felt more than a little overwhelmed.

A gentle warmth bloomed in his mind as he turned to stare up at the dragon.

"I know, I had lost hope of ever seeing another bonded pair when the dragons fell, let alone finding my own after so long. I suppose we will just need to approach this as best we can. I am unsure how much you remember from your elders, and I will admit my knowledge is rather out of date, but I can say this much. I will do everything I can to answer your questions and accept your decision on the matter."

Jango nodded numbly and, after a second, deactivated his saber and slowly walked closer to Obi-wan, the other holding impossibly still until Jango had carefully lowered himself to the floor a safe distance away. Jango took a calming breath before his face fell into a neutral mask, and he turned his gaze up to the dragon and spoke in a hard tone.

"I want to know what happened. From the beginning, every detail. Starting with what happened to the dragons. We can discuss the matter of the bond once I know more."

He felt a flash of something akin to pride from the other's mind as Obi-wan straightened his neck and brought it down so Jango wouldn't have to crane his own to meet the other's eyes. The feeling was replaced soon by a dull aching and old sorrow as the dragon's voice returned.

"You may have been taught of the dragons, but only those bonded to our kin knew the intricacies of the dragons of old. Many bonded resided in cities, much like this one, dedicated to living in harmony with the dragons, learning of my race, and sharing the knowledge of their own. It wasn't until later that the riders and their bondmates began to seek other living arrangements closer to the cities. 

Dragons are an old race with centuries of culture and knowledge, and as such, we had a Council of the oldest and strongest of our race whose purpose was protecting our ways and keeping our culture alive and flourishing. The Council was wise and the only rulers my kind has ever known. To be accepted as a member of such an important role was the highest honor. But the Council was stubborn, and while they learned and preserved our way, they also refused to see any change to such ideologies. This prived our downfall in the end. 

As you know, many creatures make these lands their home, and as a race as old as ours, we worked to protect them just as your ancestors worked to protect the humans that lived alongside them. It was this bond that maintained the balance between our races."

Obi-wan seemed to hesitate as another wash of sorrow plucked at Jango, though he could feel the tinges of anger buried within it as well. 

"The Sith, as we called them, came suddenly, we still are not sure where they first came from, but they came and with them brought such darkness, such power that suddenly the carefully maintained balance of energy and forces was torn apart in their wake. You see, the land and its power were given and balanced on its own as we lived, but with this new power, something shifted, and suddenly the world grew unstable. They brought with them fire and anger and hatred of the likes we had never encountered. It wasn't natural, but we rose to meet them as we had sworn to protect those who called these lands their home. It was a struggle that lasted ages, and finally, it seemed that after many centuries the Sith had been purged, and the balance would heal. Until several centuries ago when suddenly a new Sith appeared. He came and with him brought that same destructive force. My mentor, Qui-gon Jinn, fought him and was slain in ariel combat after I was wounded and grounded. I tried to hunt him, to avenge the death of my mentor, but the Council forbade me, and I foolishly listened. You see, our teachings and culture demand harmony and inner balance, such things as revenge brought our magic too close to that used by the Sith and threatened to unbalance us. At the time, I still believed their teachings, and as such, I let go of my hatred, or so I thought."

"This Sith, is he still alive?"

The coppery dragon snarled lowly.

"He lives, yes, but not for much longer. Other creatures and humans began to bring us word of more and more Sith appearing throughout the regions surrounding ours, and while the Council would send us to investigate such encounters, they studiously refused to allow the humans, your ancestors to interfere or help, claiming that it was our ancient duty to protect from this threat and that we alone should do so now. And so bonded pairs were kept in the dark, and by extension, the humans of this realm heard nothing of the rising threat until it was too late.

I was a part of the Council at the time, and I had thought that they were beginning to see reason and would warn the humans as the threat grew, but I was blinded by my faith in them and their preachings of the old ways."

Jango watched as the dragon lowered his head ina slow bow of shame.

"The Sith came, and on that day, they razed the Council's den and the cities around it to the ground. They had been gathering forces right beneath our snouts, those who the dragons had forsaken over generations. With those spurned by the Council, they hunted down and slaughtered every dragon they could find and brought war to all those who a dared try to aid us. We didn't stand a chance against them. The bonded pairs flew to try to warn the human cities, but they were too late, and within a day, our once proud culture was in tatters, and the dragons had been hunted to near extinction. The few of us who survived went into hiding, a last bid to save our race and spread the knowledge of what had occurred. We feared that without the dragons to fight them, the Sith would overtake this land and destroy it, but for some reason, they went into hiding just like us. Maybe they too had lost too many and sought to preserve themselves, but it mattered little we saw no signs of them and believed things to have become safe. Until the Sith that slew my mentor reappeared."

"The one the drake, Anakin was talking about?" Jango questioned.

"Yes, not long ago, he suddenly reemerged, and since we have been working to track his movements. We don't know why he has chosen to reappear after all this time, but we cannot allow the Sith to return. So when I heard his cries from the town, I left my hiding place for the first time in decades and went to face him. I had hoped to kill him, but it seems I failed once more. But Anakin believes to have tracked his den, and as soon as I have the strength for it, we will find him there, and I will finish what I should have centuries ago."

Jango was a little overwhelmed if he was being honest with himself. All these years, he was taught that the people of Mandalore had been forsaken by the dragons or had done something to drive them off. Yet if Obi-wan was speaking the truth... 

Jango's family was old, and stories of the darkness that had swept the land of their ancestors had been passed down through the generations, tales of a great evil having burned towns and shadows made of fire and magic tearing cities apart in mere days. The stories had never spoken of what the creatures had been, only that they had suddenly vanished with no trace after the world had crumbled at their feet. To find out now that the same attackers had not only been the reason the dragons had vanished but were returning was more than concerning. For a moment, Jango couldn't help but morn the normalcy of the hunt, of just taking contracts and returning after a successful kill. 

"What about the bonded? Why did you not come to the clans and ask for aid even after the attacks? Surely some bonded survived?"

Obi-wan shook his head slowly.

"No, the Sith knew of the importance the bonded held in our relationship with the humans, they were slaughtered entirely. The Sith wanted no one left to warn of their coming. After the attacks, we could have returned to the cities and explained what had happened, but what was stopping the humans from turning on us even then? We had kept the secret of the Sith's existence from them and had almost destroyed their race alongside ours? What reason would they have to trust us ever again, let alone help us against an enemy they had just finally rid themselves of? By helping us, they would invite the Sith's wrath upon their people again. No, I would never ask that of them."

Jango understood what the other meant and understood on a deeper level what Obi-wan was saying but couldn't help but feel a flash of anger. 

"So instead you chose to hide and not even tell the clans of the people of Mandalore what had attacked them? You hid and, and just guessed that these Sith things had vanished or gone underground?" 

Obi-wan growled in warning as a flash of irritation thrummed in Jango's chest with the sound's reverberations, but it faded just as quickly into something remorseful.

"I am not proud of my actions following the fall of the dragons, and would never dare ask forgiveness from the people or creatures of this realm for my inaction both before and after the attacks. I hid at the time because I had a hatching with me, and I was scared and alone, and I didn't know what to do!" 

By the end, the voice had risen, and Jango felt a part of his anger crumble as the dragon before him admitted to such a human reaction.

"I understand." Jango started, his tone low, but not unkind. "I understand what fear for you and your family can drive a person too. It's not my place to forgive you or accept an apology, but I can offer you my own acceptance of your words. Your actions caused the death of many, but it was not done with ill intent."

Expecting it, the warrior steeled himself against the emotions that flooded his mind, but it still stole his breath for a moment as they crashed over him.

"Thank you." Obi-wan whispered in his mind.

Jango nodded outwardly, allowing the silence to hang for a long moment before speaking up. 

"Thank you for telling me. I know there is trust lost between our people, but I'm not my father or his or his before that, and their fights aren't mine. That being said, this new fight is. I accepted a contract for that Sith, and I have never come back empty-handed. I don't plan to start now. However, we need to talk about this new bond between us. I learned of the bonded pairs that flew together just like every other child of the clans, but you already said that this one was unusual."

Obi-wan seemed to pull himself from whatever melancholy thoughts he had fallen into and took on a more serious tone, focusing on the new topic entirely.

"Yes, it seems our bond is rather hasty, though strong from what I can tell. I've felt your emotions quite strongly since it formed, and I remember Qui-gon telling me of his own bond being so muted at first that he's hardly noticed it."

"Is that a bad thing? Our clan considered the bonds to be intimate and private, so no one really gave any first-hand accounts."

"No…" The coppery dragon hummed. "I can't find any reason such a strong and fast bonding process would be dangerous to us in any way, other than your anger. I understand we are both quite new to this, but if you could please not shove your irritation at me so forcefully, it's akin to being poked at by one of your human swords."

Jango huffed at he mocking tone and snapped back. "And your every passing emotion feels like I am drowning. Maybe get a handle on that before your lecture me."

The immediate flickering of embarrassment reached the mandalorian before it was cut off abruptly enough for Jango to feel the backlash and winced.

"Apologies." Obi-wan murmured, but Jango waved him off.

"Could this be a full bonding? The riders always spoke of the second full bonding strengthening their connection. Maybe we skipped all the pussyfooting and created a soul bond by mistake?"

Jango stated it plainly but hoped the other couldn't feel his spike of apprehension at the idea of that being that case. The connection between a dragon rider and their bonded was a slow and deliberate process for a reason. It was binding yourself to another for life on a level that could never be achieved by any other means. It wasn't something you did on accident with a random dragon you just met. Bonds were predetermined, how was heavily speculated, but there was still a long period to acclimate the pair to each other before even forming even a basic bond, yet it seemed they were already far beyond that stage. He couldn't help but feel that this was moving far too fast.

"No, definitely not. Something as permanent as that has different rules. Though this bond is deeper then I would have thought for an initial bond, you could not accidentally bind our souls. That said, I'm afraid, as Anakin stated, this is not the most ideal of times to begin such a lengthy and involved process, but we cannot ignore it either."

Obi-wan was right, other then acclimating to their new bond and each other, bonds were usually unstable and hard to control in the initial stages. Tradition would have them spend nearly a month together alone to make sure that they had bonded fully and learned how to control the connection before moving forward. But Jango didn't have a month to just sit around, and with the Sith now a threat, he had a strong suspicion the dragon before him would be just as opposed to the idea. With this in mind, Jango reached a decision. It wasn't the best idea, but it would have to do, for now.

"Then we'll just have to do the fast version of this all."

"I beg your pardon?"

Jango found himself holding back a smirk at the almost offended tone of the other's exclamation. 

"You said yourself the process is long, but I've got no interest in sitting in this dingy room for a month, and if you actually found that Sith thing's lair, then you'll need to go there. So, we postpone proper bonding and do the fast version."

"I don't think you can just-"

"You can't do anything until you've healed. Even something as stubborn as you can't shake off an injury like that." Jango gestured to the dragon's wounded side, ignoring the offended huffing the other was making. 

"Which means that you'll be grounded for at least a week or so. It's not long enough to do a full bonding period, but it should be long enough for us to get a good idea of how this will work, find out a little about each other, and at least stabilize this enough as to not have any backlash from it."

Obi-wan started to argue but seemed to cut himself off as he thought over Jango's words, the man himself just standing there with his hands on his hips as he waited for the dragon to agree. Finally, there was a long drawn out sigh.

"The Council would be horrified by this, and I myself don't think this is the best of plans, but you're right, we cannot be particular about this. We need a chance to learn about our bond, and we need to do so in a short time. Fine, we will take the time I am healing to complete the bond ceremony. But once the Sith is defeated, we will be stopping to have a proper bonding period. Agreed?"

Jango nodded, almost sticking his hand out on instinct before stopping himself and after a moment's hesitation, sending a small mental confirmation over the bond. 

"Sounds like a plan to me."


	4. Chapter 4

What followed was one of the most frustrating but exciting weeks of Jango's life. Obi-wan being older by several centuries, meant that he had far more of an idea of how the bonding process and stages of the connection worked. He had spent many hours explaining the details to Jango as the man worked on finding a way to live in this new space. When he wasn't learning more about the bond, the warrior was out hunting game, searching for water and materials he could use to improve his living situation while in the dragon's company. 

By the end of the week, he had created a fairly adept living space for himself among the rotting shelves as well as learned more about dragon riders and their dragons than anyone else in his clan currently. 

The bond was still a relatively wild thing, almost like the old communication devices his father had let him play with as a child. Sometimes the emotions and communication between them were strong and natural, barely a thought to control. However, most of the time, the bond was fluctuating, overwhelming one or the other with rushes of unfiltered emotions or communication. It was a trying process to find a way to control it, and Jango was far from confident in it by the time Obi-wan was flying again near the second to last day.

They had discussed Jango trying to fly with him but had quickly shot the idea down as without training and a decent saddle, the process was just a recipe for injury. Instead, Jango had watched the other circle lowly over the valley and tried to catalog the other's movements to hopefully help him adjust to them once he did take to the air with the massive beast.

It was during one of these short flights of Obi-wan's when Anakin returned. Swooping and diving around the larger dragon in the air, unabashedly showing off his agile flying thanks to his smaller form Anakin toyed with the older dragon. The amused fondness Jango felt through the connection told him this was nothing new between the pair. So he had stayed and watched the duo swoop and dive and dance around each other in complicated patterns until finally they seemed to grow tired and set down near where Jango had sat. 

He made his way over and greeted the younger drake before all three of them made their way back down into the lower level. As soon as they arrived, Jango felt the mood shift. 

"It's him." Anakin stated bluntly, his throat swelling with suppressed flames. Obi-wan's answering growl vibrating Jango's bones as anger pulsed in steady waves from the dragon. 

"You're positive?"

"Yes, I tracked him back to it, but Master, there is something else there. I couldn't get close enough to find what it was, but dark energy oozes from that place."

The older dragon huffed. "Well, of course, it's his den."

The drake shook his head in quick little jerks. 

"No, this is something else. I can feel the magic coming from Maul, and this was something else, darker, older. I've never felt anything like it, Obi-wan. Just being near it, I could feel my own magic twisting, like the Council used to say it would."

"It doesn't matter, we need to stop this now before it escalates. He needs to die."

Jango winced as the full strength of Obi-wan's emotions crashed against his mind. They had gotten better at filtering their connection, stopping it from possibly overwhelming the other, but it seemed like the other wasn't even trying right now. With a small growl, Jango shoved back his own emotions, irritation at the other's rashness, impatience at how he was brushing off the other dragon, and finally, a small amount of concern for the way his normally calm companion was acting about this.

Obi-wan flinched, a tiny motion really, but it was enough to let Jango know that he had been heard. A small wave of reassurance was gently pushed back his way, and Obi-wan visibly relaxed.

"I'm sorry Anakin, I allowed my emotions for the situation to overcome me for a moment."

"It's fine, Master, I understand." Anakin purred lowly in reassurance, and Obi-wan answered it with a gentle rumbling of his own.

"I just cannot allow him to slip away again. If we don't catch him in his den, we risk him escaping and hiding again, and if there is indeed something else there causing the dark energy, then we must destroy it before its influence can spread."

"I know, Obi-wan, and I trust you. When should we leave?"

Obi-wan seemed to consider that for a long moment before speaking up again.

"Maul has the advantage in the dark hours, we should confront him at light tomorrow."

"Okay."

"Good, that gives us a few hours to figure out how I'm going to fly with you."

Boy dragons whipped around to stare down at Jango, who was already thinking of different ways he could secure himself to Obi-wan's back without the harnessing of a saddle. 

"No, absolutely not." Obi-wan said firmly as Anakin looked back and forth between the two curiously. 

Jango bristled at the tone in the other's voice. "What do you mean, no?"

Obi-wan, more than used to Jango's attitude, having experienced it far too much over the past week, bristled right back.

"I mean no, you will not be coming to Maul's den. Jango that is unbelievably dangerous and foolish. What will you do during the fight? You saw yourself how powerful and big he is compared to you."

"I think you forget who drove him off the first time." Jango snapped back, causing Obi-wan to growl.

"This isn't a question of your skills as a warrior, this is a matter of common sense! One swipe from his claws and you are dead, being exposed to that level of dark energy could kill you. For the God's sake, you could fall to your death just getting there. I know you are a capable and proud warrior, but you are also my bonded, and I will not take part in bringing you to an early grave. Anakin and I will face him alone."

"Isn't it this way of thinking that got your race wiped out? This heroes complex bantha shit!"

It was a low blow, and Jango knew it hit hard by the soft whine that Anakin gave, but Jango was past caring as he glared at his bondmate who was looking angry and hurt, but was listening. Taking a calming breath, Jango spoke softer this time, though his tone was just as firm.

"You're close to this, Maul killed your mentor and started the events that lead to you losing everything. I understand. However, you aren't alone in this. You have Anakin this time and like it or not, we are bound, and so you are stuck with me now too. So stop being so stubborn and let us help you, really help you. I swear that I won't do anything reckless, but I won't just sit here and wait for you to come back, not knowing if any moment I could feel the bond snap and never know what had happened."

Jango could feel the guilt from the dragon over the connection, muffled, but still very apparent. Anakin turned to Obi-wan.

"He's right, you know. You aren't alone, Obi-wan, and we will do this together." His dark head swung to regard Jango, and he snorted a puff of smoke. "I'm glad Obi-wan found a bondmate like you. He needs someone to put him in his place."

Jango gave the drake a feral grin. "Of course."

#

Just as Jango had suggested, they had spent the rest of the day finding a way for Jango to stay safely atop Obi-wan and planning their attack, and before they knew it, they were preparing to leave in the dim light of pre-dawn.

"Are you secure?" Obi-wan's warm voice filtered into his thoughts, the tinge of nervousness echoing Jango's own.

"Yeah, I'm tied off. Remember to keep your decent slow, the wind pressure gets bad fast."

A wordless agreement brushed his thoughts as Obi-wan and Anakin exchanged a glance and, with a few powerful beats of their leathery wings, lifted off the ground and slowly rose from the valley. 

The arrangement of ropes around Obi-wan's spines that held Jango secure strained and dug into him painfully as the pressure of their ascent dragged him back, but held. As it was though the flight was slow, Obi-wan taking the utmost time and care to remain as level as possible and keep his head higher to block the worst of the biting wind.

They had flown several times yesterday, but the low loops of the valley could never have prepared Jango for the feeling of real flight. It was exhilarating and terrifying and awe-inspiring all at once, and he couldn't find the words, so he just pushed his feelings across the bond grinning. The cloud brushed his hand as Jango took a moment to remove his glove and trail his fingers through the fluffy wet masses. Obi-wan sent him a cluster of warm, happy emotions that Jango barely paid any mind too as he marveled at the experience of just existing this high above the world. 

From here, everything seemed small and meaningless, and suddenly all those tales of the bonded pairs of old spending hours in the sky made sense. Who would ever want to leave this behind?

But they were not flying for fun or training. Jango replaced his glove and leaned in tight to Obi-wan's back as he ran through the plan one last time in his mind. How Anakin would go in first to flush the other into the more open cave systems surrounding Maul's den and how Obi-wan would drop Jango nearby before joining them. Keeping the Sith in the confined space of the cave would limit his abilities and keep him from escaping. It would also provide Jango plenty of cover on the ground, which would allow him to sneak past and search for the source of the dark energy that Anakin had reported feeling. If it all went to plan, Maul would die before escaping, and the two dragons would burn the cave and its contents.

"We're here." Jango tensed as Obi-wan's quiet words reached him, and he sent back a burst of confidence and determination, feeling the dragon's answering rumble throughout his entire body. 

Ahead Jango's visor scanned the cliffside of the mountain and picked out the sizeable gaping cave mouth they were approaching. The dragons didn't even slow as they tucked their wings close and shot through. Switching his visor to a higher setting to give him a better visual, Jango couldn't help but shiver at the odd sensation that washed over him. It was like cold, but worse. It seeped into his skin, worming its way under his armor and causing every instinct he had honed over the years to scream warning. 

He must have let some of his reaction slip through the bond because a moment later, the feeling was smothered by warmth and light as Obi-wan pushed his own magic towards Jango, accompanying it with a wordless encouragement. Unlike the first time he had felt the sensation, Jango opened himself to it, allowing the feeling to buzz across this entire being until he could barely feel the darkness.

Slightly ahead of them, Anakin suddenly shot forward, taking a growing lead as Obi-wan began to trail, both because of the plan and also as he fought to navigate the smaller space with his larger bulk. 

"Be careful, Anakin."

"I will Obi-wan. We've got him this time."

Just as Anakin had put a significant enough distance that Jango could barely hear his words, there was a sudden ear-piercing shrieking, and a massive shadow detected from the darkened ceiling. Anakin gave a matching scream as Maul slammed into his back and took him to the cave floor, the pair landing in a flailing tangled mass as they snapped and tore at each other. 

Obi-wan roared a challenge even as he dropped, the fast decent nearly tearing Jango from his back. As it was, Jango had already grabbed a knife from his boot and began to slash at the ropes securing him. The impact of the copper dragon hitting the floor was enough to snap the last few bindings, and Jango was thrown from his seat, sliding and tumbling down Obi-wan's flank in a clattering of armor he only just managed to turn into a roll at the last moment before hitting the hard stone ground. 

There was a flash of apology from his bondmate, but the massive dragon was already bounding towards the still screeching pair. With a lunge, Obi-wan reached them and sunk his teeth into Maul's scruff, dragging him away from Anakin even as Maul twisted and got in several good hits on Obi-wan's neck and shoulders. Their cries echoed in the cavernous space, almost overwhelming Jango's helmet audio causing him to stagger for a few precious moments as he fought to lower the volume.

Maul had torn loose of Obi-wan's hold, and the very shadows around them seemed to bleed and warp to surround the Sith as he took off from the floor and shot for the entrance. Obi-wan and Anakin on him not a moment later. 

It was terrifying to watch. The dragon who had acted to calm and civil around him, patiently explaining and learning with him for a week now stripped down to basic animalistic instinct as his blood-stained mouth snarled at the Sith. There was nothing but fury and rage in the bond, and Jango had to force himself to look away. He had wasted enough time, and they could handle Maul, he had to find what Anakin had sensed. 

Taking off at a jog, Jango wasn't too worried that he would be noticed but still kept to the shadows and rockier parts of the floor to avoid the chance of being spotted. The cavern was bigger then it had seemed from his initial view from Obi-wan's back, and they were supposed to have gotten further in before encountering the Sith. 

It took Jango longer than he would have liked to reach the far end of the cavern, and he couldn't stop himself from sending a last glance over his shoulder towards the fighting. Maul was avoiding the pair consistently, taking quick strikes at them instead of entering an all-out brawl. Once he had failed to down Anakin in his initial attack, it seemed he had switched tactics. Jango sent up a silent prayer to the Gods as he turned his back and ran into the next section of caverns, his visor scanning quickly for signs of another attacker or the cause of the dark energy. 

Ignoring the sounds of fighting altogether, he scanned each exit from the cavern in an attempt to discern which was most frequently used, but it proved futile. A flash of pain from Obi-wan hit him, causing him to stagger, but for a brief moment, the warmth he had all but forgotten, left his mind and he felt the sickening drag of that dark miasma that had struck him when they entered the Sith's lair. It was back a breath later, but that flash of feeling was all Jango needed to know what had to be done. 

Steeling himself, Jango sent a wave a reassurance over the bond followed by a wordless apology before he used every ounce of his mental strength to visualize the bond being blocked, cutting himself off from Obi-wan entirely in an instant. 

That dark sickening cold hit him like a physical blow, and Jango was forced to his knees by the sensation. Faintly he heard Obi-wan give a wailing cry from behind him, and he could feel the bond scraping at his mind in painful pulses. He'd known that cutting off the bond like he had would be painful, but it was more then he could have ever prepared for, feeling as though his mind was being torn apart. Combined with the dark energy now swamping his body, Jango couldn't hope to stop the tears that began to stream down his face as his entire form trembled and curled in on itself.

He's not sure how long he crouched there, numb to everything but the overwhelming sensations in his own body, but eventually, he managed to block out some of the pain and drag his mind back to awareness. The sound of the fight still reverberated through the caves, but now he could feel the sickening swells of darkness both from behind him and from one of the caves to his right.

His legs trembled as he forced himself up and began to stagger in that direction, all his willpower set on not heaving everything he'd eaten recently at the sticking sensation that grew with every step closer he came to the adjoining cave. 

By the time he had reached the entrance, he was shaking and sweating, breaths coming out in harsh pants as he fought the presence. It had warped from an overwhelming pressure warding him away to something smooth and velvety, drawing him in, begging him wordlessly to come closer, and Jango felt icy fear gripping his heart as he did just that. 

As he finally rounded the last bend in the cave wall that led to the cavern, he felt his breath stolen from him.

Before him stretched a massive cavern, lit by an eerily red glow that seeped from thousands of items piled around the space. They were everywhere and everything. Jango's eyes swept the space, catching on carved figurines and shapes, glittering gem-encrusted trinkets and urns. They ranged in size from smaller items he could hold to massive carved creatures that stood three times his height, and all of them pulsed in time with that presence, the one now roaring at him to approach, to touch, to join.

"What the kriff?" He panted as he leaned on the wall, just staring at the hoard. Could this be it? Could this be the source of the dark energy, it certainly felt like it, that oily darkness thick enough to be cut in this room, coiling around Jango.

Suddenly without him even realizing it, he found himself standing near one of the massive statues, the carved grooves in it pulsing faster with red light, his gloveless finger mere centimeters from touching the polished surface. Shocked Jango cursed and try to pull away, but the voice that had been whispering faintly before was now chanting in his mind. Commanding him, begging him to touch it. 

His other hand came up to grab his own wrist, trying to yank his hand away from the statue, but it wasn't working, something dragging his hand closer. 

"No, no!" He snarled frantically, but it was futile as his finger closed the remaining gap, and his skin pressed ever so gently against the cool surface.

The effect was instantaneous as the feeling from before completely overtook him. All his senses were gone in the face of the overwhelming surge of power. He could vaguely hear himself screaming, and it was echoed by another sound from somewhere far away from him. He stayed like that for what felt like years, locked in place as the energy flooded him until suddenly there was warmth. The link bond tore open, and Obi-wan was suddenly there in his mind, raging and tearing away the power that inhabited him. He could only watch, as though a spectator in his own mind as Obi-wan fought viciously against the power's hold, and at first, it seemed he would win. The darkness was being forced back, and Jango could feel awareness trickling back with each moment. 

But something happened, a snapping sensation in his mind, and suddenly that darkness was surging back into place, tearing at his very existence, and Jango felt Obi-wan's presence being forced from him. 

"Jango!" He heard the other's voice, so faint, quieter then it had ever been, and he reached for it, frantically digging through the darkness to find that warmth and light and cling to it, but the other voice was back whispering into his mind, urging him away from everything but the presence now coiling in his chest. 

"Jango, we must complete the bond! I cannot reach you. Please, Jango, answer me!"

Obi-wan sounded terrified, and Jango's very soul ached at the sound, causing him to cry out in response. He could barely understand the other's words now, drowning in the darkness. He was suffocating on it, his ears filled with the chanting from before. Just when he thought he would become overwhelmed, he saw a glimpse of light. It was faint and wavering, and even as he watched, it dimmed. Panicked, he grabbed for it, fighting his way through the oppressive force, squeezing him from within. He tore and screamed and pushed through it towards the light, and the dark voice began to scream as well, but then he felt it. His mind latched onto the warmth and light and pure energy that he had come to recognize after hours each day spent familiarizing himself with it in the sunny cleaning before the old buildings. 

He cried out and latched onto the sensation, opening his entire self to it and felt a surge of power meet him. The darkness continued to scream and burn in his mind, but prying tendrils were ripped painfully away, and the light rushed in to fill the gaping holes they left. Suddenly Jango was aware of everything in a detail he had never been before. 

He could feel wings on his back, fire in his chest. He could feel his teeth sinking into the oily blackness of Maul's side even as warm blood sprayed his tongue. He could feel the fury and power and every tensing movement in his muscles. He lost himself in it, the edges of where Obi-wan began, and Jango ended blurring, and even as he felt a moment of fear at that, he was overcome by the rightness of what he felt. The sense of belonging and strength.

Then he was torn away, and he was back in his own body, crumpled on the dirty cave from before the now dark statue, but the cavern was anything but dark. The red light from the other objects pulsed brightly now, washing the space in flashing red light as the energy from before only grew, pressing Jango to the floor. He fought it, desperately, cursing and swearing as his visor flickered and cut out. Reaching up, he tore it from his head just as there was a loud shrieking, and Maul tore into the room. 

Even from here, Jango could see how injured the Sith was, his entire body torn and bleeding dark crimson as he shadows around him dripped off his form. He half dragged, half flew into the space, crashing to the floor in a tumbling mass or trembling muscle and shadows. His shrieks were filled with fury and pain as he continued to painfully drag himself deeper into the room.

Jango was sure he made no sound, but glowing yellow eyes from the darkness whipped around to pin him where he still struggled to stand. 

For a long moment, they just stared at each other, eyes locked as Jango watched the fury in those eyes hardened into something colder. Then Obi-wan and Anakin burst into the space, their own bodies as ragged as the Sith's, but their challenging roars holding strength and determination. They lunged at Maul, and from where Jango knelt, it looked as though the Sith would lunge to meet them, but at the last moment, Maul twisted to face the pile of glowing items behind him. 

"Obi-wan, wait!"

Jango yelled, but the dragon either didn't hear him or couldn't stop his own momentum. As the pair closed in on the Sith, Maul released a jet of fire directly into the shining mound's center. As the fire engulfed, the hoard Obi-wan's teeth sank into the Sith's neck, snapping it with a vicious yank, and the dark form went utterly limp, flames sputtering out.

There was a long moment of silence as the remaining three occupants realized that it was over, Maul was dead, truly dead, and then the first explosion came. Jango slammed back to the floor even as his eyes shot to the burning pile of items as another explosion came from within. As he watched horrified, one by one, the hundreds of items amassed in the pile began to explode, each releasing a cloud of what looked like smoke, but it didn't dissipate. Instead, Jango could only watch as each plume of smoke began to coil into ribbons and shoot away from the pile, emitting a shrieking noise that nearly deafened the mandalorian. 

He could see Obi-wan and Anakin trying to stop the fires from spreading, to disrupt the trailing smoke from fleeing, but it was a futile effort, and before they knew it, nearly the entire cavern was up in flames. The smoke creatures bursting free from their objects and fleeing.

"It's not use!" We have to leave!" Jango heard Obi-wan call, likely to Anakin, but he had almost lost sight out them in the haze and smoke from the fires. He was about to call out to the dragon over the bond when suddenly the other was above him, his coppery scales gleaming in the light of the fire, his entire form glistening with blood, but Jango easily found those cool blue eyes. 

He could barely breathe, panting into his gloved hand to try to filter out the smoke as his eyes watered, and his armor began to heat against his skin. So he could do little when Obi-wan's massive jaws came down to carefully snag the back of his collar and lift him,

"Jango, Jango I am sorry, please just stay still, I'll get us out." Obi-wan's worried tone was like a soothing balm in Jango's mind though he was more than a little confused by the worry he heard in the other's voice. 

He tried to answer but found that his eyes had slid closed at some point, and he couldn't seem to find the energy to respond. So instead, he pushed a small acknowledgment over the bond and finally allowed himself to rest.


	5. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter of this story!

Jango woke coughing. He curled into himself as the rough heaves tore at his already raw throat, and even after they stopped, he could only lay there for a long moment just breathing carefully. As he became more aware of himself, he felt the gentle pulsing hum of warmth he knew was Obi-wan close by and gingerly reached out to the bond. 

It was so easy, far more so than before, to connect to the other's presence and send a small greeting over the link. Immediately he felt a burst of warm concern and relief returned and heard the sound of heavy steps padding closer.

"Jango?" Obi-wan implored as Jango rolled over and carefully levered himself into a seated position just in time to see Obi-wan step closer and carefully lower his head to brush his snout against Jango. 

The warrior startled a little at the odd interaction but didn't push the other away. Instead, he carefully allowed himself to rest his weight against the warm scales for a few moments before pulling away.

"What happened?" Jango could remember most of what had occurred in the caves, but then things became blurry. He glanced around and found them in the clearing in front of the citadel. 

Obi-wan rumbled a low noise and, after a moment, lowered himself to curl around where Jango sat with a long groan. Up close, Jango had a clear view of the still fresh injuries covering the other, but he could see some of them beginning to clot and close. How long had he been unconscious?

"After you left Anakin and I fought Maul. He was stronger than that day near the town, and it was a closer match then we thought it would be, though knowing that we were in such proximity to all those artifacts, it makes perfect sense. He was likely drawing strength from them even as he fought us."

"Artifacts?" Jango questioned, leaning back into the warm flank behind him as he found sitting to be far too troublesome right now. 

"The items you discovered in his den. Sith have a unique ability to imbue objects with a fragment of their power as they pass and store a piece of themselves within those items as long as they remain undisturbed. They are dormant like that, unable to interact with the outside world other then by telepathic connections they can establish if a living creature wanders too close. Maul had likely been keeping them active in order to siphon their power, and when they felt you nearby, they latched onto your lifeforce. When you touched the one-"

"I couldn't stop myself, something took control and forced my hand-"

"I know Jango, the influence of the Sith, especially those as ancient and powerful as the ones contained in those artifacts, was far more than anyone untrained in resisting them would be able to hold out against. I do not blame you for activating it, I am simply grateful you were able to break from its influence before it overcame you completely. I felt the Sith enter your mind when you activated its artifact, and Maul knew it as well. He fled from the fight to try to reach the room, though I am unsure what he wanted to accomplish originally. We chased him, and I reached out to you, but by that point, you were completely engulfed in the artifact's thrall, and I couldn't separate your mind from it, not without risking you."

Jango silently raised his hand to rest on the other's side as he felt the echoes of the fear and pain the other had felt in that moment, carefully not remembering how that Sith had felt as it pried his mind apart. 

"I was desperate and afraid, and so I reached out to you and tried the only option I had left. I offered you my soul, opened the bond, and you answered."

The dragon's voice was soft with reverence as he spoke those words, and Jango once again sought out the pulsing warmth that had bloomed in his mind, feeling the other completely through its connection.

"Once the soulbond was formed, I could reach you, and by the time Anakin and I had reached the cavern that held the artifacts, you had been freed from its grasp. Maul must have realized that he was cornered. He sacrificed himself, allowed me to land the killing blow so he could set the artifacts alight."

Jango nodded as he remembered clearly the moment the Sith had gone limp in Obi-wan's jaws, and the fire had begun to spread.

"The smoke that came from the artifacts seemed alive. Those were the Sith who were in them, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"Kriff."

The pair sat in silence, the steady rise and fall of the great dragon's side at Jango's back soothing as he ran through what he had just been told, and began to think of what this meant for them, for the world now. 

"You said that the artifacts only held a portion of their energy, is that strong enough to be dangerous?"

"Some, yes, the longer the artifact exists, the more stable the power within can become meaning that some of the most powerful Sith will likely still be a very great threat, but some of the weaker Sith will need to find hosts or power sources to latch onto before posing much of a threat. Maul was likely feeding them his own energy, and we have no idea how that has affected them, but for now, I suspect there will be a short time where they cannot cause any harm."

"Well, when they do, we'll just need to stop them."

Surprise flickered across the bond, and Jango turned to look up at Obi-wan.

"We are soul bonded now, this isn't just your fight anymore. And even if we weren't a boded pair, I would still help. This threat is serious and a danger to every inhabitant of this realm. My clan, the Fett family, has always sworn protection of Mandalore and her people and creatures, and as a sworn warrior of my clan, I have my duty to uphold that vow. We have a lot to cover, kriff we barely have any of this bond stuff worked out, but now we have the chance to do that now. And when the Sith reappear, we'll be ready to hunt them down and finish what your people started."

Jango stared at the other as he felt the hesitation, the surprise, and shock in the bond at his little speech, but then smirked as a strong surge of emotions flooded the bond and Obi-wan visibly swelled in front of him, pride shining in his eyes as he lowered his head to be level with Jango's own.

"It would be my honor, Jango of the family Fett, to fight and fly with you in protection of this land."

"Well, alright. Then let's get started."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it! Thank you for reading and TreeOfTime I hope you enjoyed the story!! Thank you to everyone else who takes the time to read and leave comments/kudos on this fic!! I had a ton of fun with this idea and the world and plan to try to play in this AU more in the future! That being said thank you for reading, I'll see you around!

**Author's Note:**

> All the chapters for this fic are going up today, so no fear you only have to wait a little while longer to see this entire thing complete!!


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